The Flurry and the Shinigami
by WereWolfPrincess1215
Summary: Axel looked down at himself, shocked that he wasn’t wearing his black leather coat anymore. His boots were replaced by sandals and socks, and his tight pants had been replaced by baggy, flowing, skirt-like pants. Where could he possibly be?
1. Dead Inferno

Hey! Yeah. It's me. Sorry for not updating the oldest fanfics, but I just have to get this off my chest!

I do not own Kingdome Hearts, of Bleach. Wish I did. Then I wouldn't have to pay for college! :D

A black-clothed hand dropped weakly at its owner's side. The redhead sadly gazed fondly at the spiky brunette. He closed his eyes as a terrible pain overtook his supple body. He could feel himself slowly fading into the darkness. For the first time ever, he felt frightened. Even when he was threatened with a thousand or more Dusks, fear was not in his heart. But now, as he slowly disintegrated, the cold fingers clutched at his non-existent heart.

Slowly, the fiery redhead gave up the fight, closing his emerald eyes forever. As he felt himself being lifted up, he wished the best for the Roxas inside Sora. "Protect him with all your heart." Echoed through his parted lips as he gave up his last ties to the world.

There was a light he could see through his eyelids, and the redhead immediately became confused. He opened them, blinking at the suddenly bright blue sky. He looked around, not recognizing where he was. The area looked strangely Japanese-themed, with light grey cobblestones and white-washed buildings. To be honest, it wasn't completely unlike Castle Oblivion, or even the World that Never Was. Where were all the people? Where were the Nobodies?

So confused by his surroundings, he barely even noticed the strange black and white under-kimono he was wearing. Axel looked down at himself, shocked that he wasn't wearing his black leather coat anymore. His boots were replaced by sandals and socks, and his tight pants had been replaced by baggy, flowing, skirt-like pants. Where could he possibly be?

The Flurry ran a hand through his fiery hair and looked around again. He quickly chose a path and strutted down it, gazing at all the buildings. He definitely wasn't in Betwixt and Between anymore.

He probably had been walking for about thirty minutes, and hadn't seen a single soul. What was with this place? Wherever he was, he wanted out! Axel gave an exasperated sigh and paused in his wanderings. Sensitive ears picked up the sound of a deep, booming voice followed by cheering. Number Eight broke into a sprint, dashing to the area where he heard the people.

The flame-haired male stopped short and gasped at the sight of a huge carnival. From where he was standing, he could easily make out many multi-colored booths. His emerald eyes also saw many other people dressed like he was currently. He carefully picked his way through the crowd, eyeing the booths as he passed. A delicious scent filled his nose and his stomach gave a low growl.

Axel followed his nose to an orange-colored booth run by a tall, bald man. He tilted his head. "What are you selling? It smells good." He inhaled deeply, his mouth watering.

"Dumplings. You want one?" the man asked, already pulling a stuffed dumpling off the grill. He wrapped it in a sort of paper and handed it to the redhead. Axel couldn't wait and sunk his teeth into the soft, doughy crust, letting all the spiced juice flow down his throat.

"Hey, Renji. What did you do with your sword? Normally it's at your waist." The bald man asked curiously, pointing at the dumpling-eater's white belt.

"And what happened to your tattoos? You normally like to show them off. What's with the sissy purple diamonds? Get tired of your freaky eyebrows?" he continued, smirking.

Axel growled, the air heating slightly around him. "Why do you call me Renji? My name's Axel, got it memorized? And what freaky eyebrows? I've only had the 'sissy diamonds'." He snarled, already pulling away from the booth. Dumplings or not, he wasn't going to stick around.

He stuffed the rest of the snack into his mouth and chewed quickly. He gulped it down and looked at the next booth that caught his eye. It was quite large with a black and a white square with an X and an O on them. He looked around, wondering what it was, and where he could enter.

"Step right up! Don't be shy! You! You look like a promising specimen. Want a try?" a high-pitched voice behind him crowed, making the Nobody whirl around. "Who...Who are you?" he asked, in shock over the weird-looking man with the white face and corncobs sticking out of his ears. The weird man scoffed.

"My my. Perhaps you've suffered from a case of amnesia. How interesting, but I'll humor you. I am Mayuri Kuratsuchi, Captain of Squad Twelve, and you were just joining, Renji." He answered, shoving 'Renji' into the line of waiting contestants. Axel glared at him, not liking being pushed into line.

"Watch it, you!" he snarled, clenching his ungloved fists. "Don't make me mad!"

The pale-faced man scoffed and waved a long, finger nailed hand. "Whatever. I've lost my interest." Axel watched him warily as the captain took his spot on a stage-like platform. The line in front of him began to move, and he was soon put onto the black-and-white board along with a scared-looking kid, a man who had no sense of style, and an orange-haired teenager. Orangy cast his eyes over toward the flame-haired man and offered him a hand. "Hey, Renji. May the best man win. By the way, what did you do to those tattoos? You had them five minutes ago. Did you put some cover-up on or something?"

Emerald eyes glittered dangerously. "I'm not Renji." He muttered under his breath. Was Renji a name given to all red-haired people here? His thoughts were interrupted by Mayuri's voice.

"First question. Daiguren Hyorinmaru is Toshiro Hitsugaya's Bankai."

Axel's eyes narrowed. What was a Bankai? Who was Toshiro Hitsugaya? He had to leap upwards quickly to avoid being sliced in two by Orangy's giant, black-and-white sword. "Jeez! What's your malfunction?!" he roared at the teenager. A wave of sand nearly blew him out of the board. He moaned and hastily got up on his feet only to have two bottles of smelly green liquid tossed onto his body. The stuff clung to his skin and it burned like crazy, dripping off of his black kimono.

"Time's up." Mayuri called, gazing over the contestants. Axel met his eye and to his surprise, the man smiled and nodded happily. Number Eight looked at the O he had been standing on.

"Correct!"

Emerald eyes flicked back to the other contestants. That answer had just been pure luck. The redhead turned his attention back to his clothes. The green stuff still burned and was now starting to create muscle spasms. He moaned and tried to brush some of it off before the next question was announced.

"Next question. Soi Fon is the captain of Squad Two."

Axel growled in his throat. He didn't even know who Soi Fon was. He stood strong on his spot, knowing he had a fifty percent chance of getting it right. Unluckily, the three other contestants barreled toward him. The Nobody quickly crouched in a defense pose, ready to shove them off his square. The dark-haired kid came at him first, but Number Eight easily threw him back with a heavy kick in the ribs. The green-panted man came charging up next. The brunette dodged the first kick, but was caught in the side with a round-house kick, sending him flying over to the X. The last one was the orange-haired kid.

The Flurry took a breath as his sword swung at him. With the skill of a cat, he leapt into the air and came down upon the blade, trapping it between the floor and his foot. Axel smirked, then flew backwards as the sword was heaved upwards. He twisted, landing gracefully back on the O tile.

"Time's up." Peridot eyes swiveled to the man on the stage. "Correct." Mayuri congratulated to the redhead. Axel grinned. So far, his Nobody's luck was still holding. Quick eyes shot over the wounded contestants. They were still down, and only he and the teenager were still standing.

"Next question."

The Captain of the Six division stalked around the cheery festival, looking for his Lieutenant. Renji had run away from work to join the festival. Unacceptable. Byakuya narrowed his eyes, silently vowing some terrible punishment. As he passed Squad Eleven's dumpling booth, he looked over to the bald man.

"Madarame. You haven't seen Lieutenant Abarai pass through here, have you?"

A hand went up to scratch his bald head and his dark eyes glinted, tinged red by his eye markings. "Sure did. Wanted a dumpling. Left that way a huffy muttering something about not being Renji. You may want to take him into Division Four." He offered, met by the black-haired man's steely gaze.

"Thank you, Madarame. Your suggestion is dutily noted."

With a spin of his heel, and a whirl of his haori, the angry captain left the stand, heading in the way Ikkaku had been pointing. He was going to make Renji pay for making him go into a festival. A festival! Of all things! Byakuya growled, seeing a head of flame appear in a tan-roofed booth playing Mayuri's quiz game.

His strode quickened, wanting to catch his assistant captain off guard. Renji still hadn't noticed him as he moved in from behind him. With an arm as quick as a viper, Byakuya snatched his lieutenant's ear, pulling him away roughly.

"Hey! What's the big idea? Oww! Stop pulling on my ear!" the redhead yelled, trying to pull away, but the captain's grip held firm.

"You skipped out of work to join a festival. After you do your paperwork, you shall be punished." Kuchiki sighed, still dragging the feisty Soul Reaper into Sixth Barracks. He opened a door and shoved his 'lieutenant' inside. Byakuya closed the door and locked it. He turned stiffly and strode down the hallway into his own office, slamming the door shut.

Axel growled. First everyone mistook him for someone else, now he was forced to do paperwork? Not happening. His emerald eyes darted around the room, looking for some way he could escape. His eyes rested upon a small window viewing the outside. A grin appeared under his purple diamonds. That would do nicely.


	2. Mistaking Flame

**Hey, guys! I'm back with the new chapter of: the Flurry and the Shinigami! Yaay! :D But, anyway…yeah.**

**I do not own Bleach, or Kingdom Hearts. If I did, Axel wouldn't have died. But if Axel didn't die, then I couldn't write this story… Oh well!**

With careful hands, the Flurry removed the mostly-intact window from its frame and prepared to go through. He stood for a bit, hand to his chin, pondering on what way he should slip out. Feet first? Then his head might get stuck. Head first? Then his backside might get stuck, and he did not want to be stuck like that. In the end, he balanced the risks of each choice and stuck his head through the small window frame.

Emerald eyes gazed down at the ground. It seemed very far away, and it would be a very long fall. His head twisted, eyeing the wall above him. There was a tiny ledge that would work for a handhold. Thankful that he had a lithe body, Axel started the dangerous task of getting out the window.

His long arms went through, strong hands grasping the ledge above him. Using mostly upper-body strength, he pulled the rest of his body through, dangling on his handhold. Axel's eyes flicked down to the path below him and gulped. The Nobody took a deep breath and released his grip, plummeting to the ground.

In the time it took him to fall, Number Eight had already loosened his body and bent his knees as to absorb some of the shock. His sandals hit the ground, making Axel stumble a bit, but otherwise he was unharmed. His hand reached up to flick a stray piece of fiery hair from his eyes before the Flurry took off running. To where, he wasn't sure, but away from the crazy, dark-haired man in the white coat.

He paused in his run, looking over his shoulder in case the dark-haired man was following him. He wasn't, so the redhead kept sprinting down the cobblestone.

"Hey! Ichigo!" a small, dark-haired girl called, waving a grey-sleeved arm. She stopped at the orange-haired Soul Reaper, slightly out of breath.

The teenager turned, chocolate eyes on the small girl. "Hey, Rukia. What's the matter?"

Rukia took a breath and started fixing her hair. "Have you seen Renji? He said he would walk around the festival with me, but I haven't seen him around."

Ichigo scratched at the back of his head. "Yeah. Last time I saw him, he was shoved into Mayuri's quiz thing. Then Byakuya grabbed him by the ear and took him off to Sixth Squad Barracks. I guess he had a lot of work to do, or something, I dunno. He was acting strangely, and saying that he wasn't Renji. You'd better check up on him."

The small Gigai-clad Soul Reaper nodded, closing her striking violet eyes. "I see. Thank you, Ichigo."

The orange head grinned. "Sure. Anytime."

Rukia Kuchiki took off running in the direction of her brother's barracks, hoping to convince him to let Renji go- just for this afternoon. Her black-haired head went down, allowing her to run faster, in thought, planning how she would convince Byakuya.

She hit something that was as dense as a brick wall and flew backwards, landing five feet away from what she had hit. She moaned and rubbed her head, before looking up at who she had ran into.

"Renji! How did you get out? Did my brother let you skip work?" Rukia asked, getting up and brushing herself off. She went over to the redhead and offered him her hand.

Axel groaned and looked up at the girl who had called him Renji, emerald eyes glittering dangerously. He smacked her hand away and rose by himself, flicking the dust off his black outfit.

"I'm sick of everyone calling me Renji! I'm not Renji!" he yelled at the small girl in the grey school uniform. He clenched his fists, angry enough to fight.

"Lieutenant Abarai. I believe I gave you direct orders, yet you defy them? Do you have a death wish?" came a voice as cold as ice from behind the redhead. Axel turned, saw who it was, and gave an exasperated sigh.

"Not you again! I thought I ditched you along with that stupid paperwork." He growled at the Captain. Dark eyes narrowed, and the Nobody took a step back. This man looked like a pretty boy, but something in his stormy eyes told him that it would not be the best idea to mess with him.

The redhead gulped and unintentionally let himself be backed up against a wall. As soon as his back hit stone, he knew he would have to get away. He crouched defensively, watching and waiting for his best escape move.

Arms pumped quickly and breaths came shorter to the fast-moving Soul Reaper. His red hair bounced up and down with each bound he took.

"Damn. I shouldn't have watched that stupid Soul Reaper Eating Contest for so long! Captain Kuchiki's gonna kill me." He groaned to himself, willing his already tired body to go faster. When he got to Sixth Barracks, he quickly decided, he would quietly take any punishment the infamous captain could think up. Unluckily for him, Byakuya was known to have little or no mercy when it came to punishing.

He rounded the corner, and stopped short, mahogany eyes wide.

All heads turned toward the newly arrived crimson-haired Soul Reaper.

"Renji?" both the Kuchikis asked in unison.

"But, Renji, I thought…" Rukia looked back at the now smug Nobody. "But if he's Renji, then who are you?"

Axel's smirk widened, flashing white teeth. "The name's Axel. Got it memorized?" He folded his arms, shaking his head. "Man, did you ever have the wrong guy. I don't even look like this Renji."

Just for a bigger point, he strode over and stood next to the still shocked Lieutenant. Being near Abarai made him notice how similar they really looked. They were both the same height, had the same color of hair, were dressed the same. The only differences were the different colored eyes and the facial tattoos. Other than that, the two Soul Reapers could have passed as twins.

Axel blinked and uneasily shuffled away. Byakuya's gaze followed him, making him even more nervous. The tips of his mouth were slightly twitching, as if he needed to say something, but didn't really want to.

"I…Beg your pardon, Axel, for mistaking you for my lieutenant." He muttered almost inaudibly. With a whirl of his haori, the strict captain strode off.

"Abarai." He called without stopping, making the black-tattooed man race to catch up. He scurried at Byakuya's heels like an obedient dog, making the Flurry laugh. He stopped short, whipping his head around to look at the small girl behind him. In all the fuss, he had forgotten to ask where he was.

"You," he started, stretching a finger towards the girl. "Where am I?"

Rukia was taken aback. Surely this man knew something of the place he was in. "This is the Soul Society."

"What's that?"

"It's where all souls go when they die."

Axel shrugged. He knew he was dead. He could very well remember being alive, too. With a start, he remembered the rest of the deceased Organization XIII. Would they be here, too? There wasn't harm in asking.

"Do you know if a Larxene, Marluxia, Lexaeus, Zexion, Vexen, Xaldin, or Demyx came through here?"

The dark haired girl shook her head. "I have not heard of those names. I'm sorry."

Axel bowed his head thoughtfully. "Thanks, I guess." He turned away from her, and started down the path leading back to the festival when a thin arm caught his shoulder.

"Wait. Do you have a Squad?"

Emerald eyes danced back to the small girl. "A Squad? What's that? I belonged to the Organization once. Do you mean that?"

Rukia shook her head again. "No. If you don't have one, I'll have to take you to my captain. He should know what to do with you. Come with me." She said with a certain air of authority and spun on her heels, short skirt slightly billowing.

Axel smirked and trailed behind her, completely oblivious to the fluttering miniskirt.

**Yay! Second chapter finished! :D Um… I wanted to say something…but I forgot… Please! People! Review! I beg of thee! Your silence is killing me! What needs to happen? What shouldn't Axel do? Did he act right? Did other people act right? TELL ME!!!!!**

**Okay. Melt-down over. **


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